Lubricating system



M. 'L. WILLIAMS.

LUBRICATING SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 9. 1915. RENEWED OCT. 2, 191a.

smears-4am I.

Patented May 13 M. L. WILLIAMS.

LUBRICATING SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 9. I915. RENEWED OCT 2, 191B.

Patented May 13, 1919.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

M. L. WILLIAMS.

LUBRICATING SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 9. 1915. RENEWED ocT. 2. 191a.

Patented May 13, 1919.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3- J ||||||Hi HIHIIIIHI man/Zip).

Jaw t 1-- W'%% M. L. WILLIAMS. LUBRIGATI NG SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED IUNEB. I915; RENEWED OCT- 2, I913.

1,303,622. Patented May 13, 1919.

Ell

llli

b ll

TED STATES PATENT OFFICE;

MARTIN I1. WILLIAMS, OF SOUTH BEND, INDIANA, ASSIGNOR, BY MESITE ASSIGNMENTS,

TO AMERICAN SLEEVE-VALVE MOTOR COMPANY, A. CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

L'UBBIOATING SYSTEM.

Application filed June 9, 1915, Serial No. 33,017.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that MARTIN L. WILLIAMS, a citizen of the United States, residing in South Bend, in the county of St. Joseph and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Lubricating Systems, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in lubricating systems and more pal ticularly to improvements in lubricating systems for engines, such as gas, steam or vapor engines, though in its broader aspects the invention is not limited to use with any particular type or types of engines.

Among the salient objects of the invention are to provide a lubricating system which can be successfully employed with engines having a ort or ports controlled by a rotating member; to provide a lubricating system whih can be successfully employed with engines having their ports controlled by movable sleeves, either reciprocating or rotating; to provide a construction in which the amount of lubrication fed to the contacting surfaces is automatically controlled by the speed of the engine; to provide a construction in which the ports through which the lubrica tion is admitted are controlled by a valve preferably spring pressed to its seat, and opened in timed relation to the speed of the crank shaft; to provide a construction in which valve or other member controlling the ports is positively opened by a cam, or other member carried by a part normally movable in the operation of the engine, such as the sleeve which controls the engine ports;

to provide a construction in which the lubricant-can be maintained under pressure, and

the pressure automatically increased with the increase of the speed of the engine; to provide a construction in which the lubricant is positively fed (as by a pump) to all of the working parts and any surplus oil properly filtered and returned to the lubricant chamber in the crank case; to provide a construction in which the lubricant chamber in the crank case is divided longitudinally into a plurality of compartments, the oil being free to pass from the forward compartment to the rear compartment in which the pump is located, but not to return from the rear compartment to the front com- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 13, 1919. Renewed October 2, 1918. Serial No. 256,629.

partment, thus insuring a supply of lubricant to the pump at all times; to provide a construction in which the leakage of either the lubricant or gas past the space between the ends of the split ring is prevented without excessive friction between the movable parts; to provide a construction in which the lubricant is fed from one bearing to another through the hollbw crank shaft without any of the lubricant being compelled to travel against the centrifugal force produced by the revolving arms of the crank shaft; to provide a construction in which an oil chamber is provided at the top of the port controlling sleeve and the lubricant is fed from this chamber over the top of the sleeve and also downwardly through a conduit bored lengthwise in the sleeve thus permitting the proper quantity of lubricant to be furnished to the portion of the sleevebelow the ports; to provide a construction in which a thin film of lubricant extends completely over the surface of the moving parts, and the supply of lubricant stopped when the engine feed is shut off;

and in general to provide a construction quantity of lubricant to the moving parts of a rotary sleeve or other types of engine.

In engines of the sleeve type, particularly those used as internal combustion engines, it is necessary" to provide a sufficiently tight seal between the sleeve and the memberin which it moves to prevent the escape of the gases which are under high pressure. This fact, taken together with the relatively large area of contacting surfaces make it imperative in engines of this type that a thin film of oil be fed upon and constantly cover the contacting surfaces of the valve sleeve and its seat. The present invention contemplates a construction in which the oil is not only positively'fed to the contact angles to .down on the line 1010 of Fig. 4.

' ends of the split ring.

through plane of Fig. 2 is an enlarged irregular cross'section through one of thepartstaken at right the'view shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a plan viewlooking down on the crank shaft.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary cross section throughone of the cylinders. A

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary horizontal section taken on the line 5.-5 of Fig. 4. N

Fig. 6 ita fragmentary vertical section taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5. Fig. 7- is a fragmentary horizontal section through one of the sealing rings.

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary side elevation SllOWlIlg the manner of Fig. 9 is an enlarged vertical section the lower part of theengine in the the center bearing.

Fig. 10 is a horizontal section looking Fi 11 is a fr menta vertical section on tl i e line 111l of 1.

Referring to the drawings and describing first the general construction of the engine, 1 designates a multi-cylinder engine having a plurality of cylinders 2 surrounded by water cooling spaces 3 in the usual manner. Each of the cylinders are provided with an inlet port.4 and an exhaust port 5, and in the particular type of engine shown, the passage of gases into the cylinder through-the inlet port and the exhaust gases out of the cylinder through the outlet port is controlled I with a slab head 16 the direct heat of the expansion chamber 17':

by a rotary sleeve 6 mountedwithin a removable lining or bushing7. At its lower end this rotary sleeve is provided with a worm gear 8 meshin with a worm wheel 9 mounted upon a sha t 10 which is driven in timed relation to the crank shaft 11 by means of intermeshing gears 12 and 13. Reciprocating within the rotary sleeve 6 is a piston 14 connected'to the crank shaft 11 by means of a connecting rod 15 in the usual manner.

The upper end of the cylinders is provided which is protected from by means of a cap 18. Depending from the latter and extending within the uper end of the rotating sleeve is a split ring 19, the construction being such that the ported portion of the rotating sleeve extends intermediate the split ring 19 and the liner or bushing 7. The split ring 19 has on its upper edge a recess portion 20 registering with a corresponding portion 21 in the cap 18.

It will .be noticed that the upper wall of the recessed portion 20 is beveled, and positioned into the recess so as to also extend into the recess 21 is a spring-supporting ring 22. The construction is such that while the split ring 19 is supported from the cap 18 so that it can have a slight movement rela tive to the cap to compensate for any inaccheck valve 27.

sealing across the' located.

, vided with a downwardly ofi'set portion curacies in alinement,.a gas-tight joint is always maintained between the ring and the system, it w1ll be noticed end of the crank case is that at the lower a lubricant chamber 23 connected to a second lubricant cham- 'ber 24 and divided from the latter by a partition wall. 25, the two chambers connecting through a port 26 controlled by a trap or his check valve is so arranged that the lubricant can flow from the chamber 24 into the chamber 23, but cannot flow back from the latterinto the former. The purpose of this check valve 27 is to prevent the lubricant from flowing back out of the chamber 23, in which the pump 28 is The lubricant contained in the chambers 23 and 24 is drawn out of the former through an inlet 29 connected to the suction pump 28 from which it is forced through the outlet 30 to the various bearings and other members to. be lubricated. Any surplus oil is drawn back into the chamber 24 by means of a return pipe 31, which discharges through a screen 32 into the chamber 24. Neari its forward end, the chamber 24 is pro- 33 the top of which is substantiall in line witli the valve 27 and the bottom'o the chamber 24, so that when there is any substantial amount of lubricant in the latter, it will lift the valve 27 and pass into the chamber 23. Thus the oil, by means of the force pump 28 is continuousl circulated to the varlous parts to be lu ricated.

As shown in Fi s. 2 and 3, the pump is driven in timed relation to the engine speed by means of a gear wheel 34 meshing with a gear wheel 35, mounted on a vertical shaft 36. This shaft near its upper end is provided with a worm gear 37 which meshes with one of the worm wheels 9 so that the amount of lubricant pumped is proportioned to the speed of the engine.

Referring now in detail to the means for conducting the oil to the various bearings, 11 port controlling sleeves, etc., the pipe 30 has a branch 45 extending into the crank-case, and terminatin in an L-coupling 38, from opposite ends 0% which lead pipes 39 and 40 extending to the crank shaft bearings 41 and 1 42. The pipe 40 is also provided with a branch pipe 43 extending to the center bearing 44. At its upper end the conduit 30 is connected with a horizontally extending conduit 46 which furnishes lubricant to the upper oil deck as hereinafter described in detail, and with a second vertically extending cohduit 47. The latter is provided at its upper end with a T-elbow 48, to one end of which is connected an. indicator 49, and in the opposite end of which is-connected a conduit having a plurality of connections 51, for conducting the oil from the pipe 50 to the various individual cylinders.

To the connection 51 is secured a pipe 52 which leads downwardly through the head and terminates in a recess 53 formed in the cap 18. The pipe 52 has a transversely extending bore 54which registers with a corresponding bore 55 formed in the cap. The outer end of the bore 55 is closed by a ported plug 56, the port of which is controlled by a valve member 57, having at its outer end a projecting lug 58, and at its inner end a stem 59. Sleeved upon the stem 59 is a spring 60 which serves to normally hold the valve 57 to its seat with the lug 58 projecting beyond the end of the plug 56, and into the chamber 61 formed at the upper end of the sleeve 6.

The construction above described is such that the spring 60 normally holds the valve 57 to its seat and prevents the flow of oil into the chamber 61, and the following means are provided for moving the valve away from its seat so as to permit the passage of lubricant from the pipe into the chamber 61. As shown in detail in Figs. 5 and 6, the upper end of the sleeve 6 is provided with a pin 62 which extends upwardly flush with the top of the sleeve 6 and is so positioned that approximately one-half 'of it extends into the plane of the chamber 61. Thus as the sleeve rotates to open and close the ports, the curved surface of the pin 62 will strike against the end of the lug 58 and acting as a cam will force the lug backward, thus moving the valve 57 from its seat and admitting the lubricant which is under pressure into the chamber 61. It is obvious that by sup- .plying a plurality of pins 62, the amount of lubricant fed in each revolution of the sleeve could be changed, but whether one pin or more are used, the amount of lubricant fed into the chamber 61 will be in direct proportion to the speed of the engine, since the valve is spring-pressedto its seat, and, for each pin employed, will be opened as many times as there are revolutions of the sleeve and each time opened will remain open the length of time necessary for the spring to return to its seat.

In order to prevent the lubricant leaking out of the chamber 61, down through the opening between the ends of the split ring, ll preferably employ the following arrangement: Near the upper end of the ring 19 is a sealing member 63, while near its lower end is a similar sealing member 64. As shown in detail in Fig. 7, the split ring 19 near its ends 65 and 66 is provided with recess portions 67 and 68 within which the sealing members 63 and 64 are adapted to seat. Both of these sealing members extend across the opening formed between the adjacent ends of the split ring, the member 63 being plane of a port 71 which opens toward the sealing ring 19 and is connected with the chamber 61 by means of a bore 72 extending downthrough the wall of the sleeve 6. The purpose of the port 71 and bore 72 is to feed 011 from the chamber 61 to that portion of the outer surface of the split ring 19 which is below the inlet and exhaust ports. While ports slmllar to 71 might be employed leadmg to the inner surface of the bushing 7, in the present construction a sufiicient amount of oil is fed over the top of the sleeve and down around the outside thereof, and down between the sleeve and the split ring 19 to maintain a thin film of oil over the entire surface. Any surplus oil fed down between the sleeve and the bushing is drawn back into the upper oil deck 73, although in some casesgit may be advisable to provide the sleeve with a plurality of small ports 74: through which the oil can pass to the interior surface of the sleeve and thus aid in lubricating the contacting surfaces of the sleeve and piston.

However, for lubricating the pistons, I preferably utilize the surplus oil from the connecting rod bearings, the lubricant being supplied to these hearings in the following manner: Lubricant is supplied to the piston rod bearings 75 and 76 from the center main crank shaft bearing 44 and to the connecting rod bearings 77 and 78 from the end main crank shaft bearings 41 and 42. As shown 1n Fig. 1, the bearing portions of the V crank shaft are provided with a central bore 79, the ends of which are closed by plugs 80 and 81. The chambers thus formed are connected by bores extending through the crank arms. However, the connection between the bearings77 and 83 and between the bearings 78 and 84 if connected by bores through the crank arm would compel the lubricant to travel toward that portion ofthe crank shaft from which it is thrown by centrifugal force. I, therefore, employ a pair of by-pass conduits 87 and 88 for connecting the respective bearings, these conduits being curved as shown in Fig. 2 so that the lubricant is permitted to travel from one bearing to the other in the arc of a circle drawn from the center of the crank shaft. This construction permits the lubricant to be fed from one connecting rod bearing to another through an intermediate bearing without having to travel back nearer the center of the shaft, or to overcome the centrifugal force which throws the lubricant out away'from the center.- v The various hollow chambers 79 contained within the connecting rod bearings are provided with ports 89, which connect with a longitudinal bore 90 extending through the connectingrod 15 so asto furnish oil to the piston pin bearing 91. There is, suflicient excess of oil furnished to the connecting rod bearings so that the surplus is thrown up against the inner wall .of the sleeve '6, through the tube 89', and

lubricates the contacting-{surfaces of the sleeve and piston.

by m ng the tube 89' of a predetermined size, the amount of lubrication thrown against the sleeve 6 can be regulated. Moreover, the amount of lubricant fed through the tube 89' is proportioned to the speedof the engine, since for each revolution of the crank shaft, the port 89 registers with the inner end of the tube 89'. If desired a baffle plate such as indicated at 92 may be employed for preventing too much lubricant being thrownagainst the wall of the sleeve.

In addition to the surplus which is drawn back into the.upper'deck 73, the latter is supplied with lubricant from the conduit 46 by a valve 94, which is actuated by a rock arm 95, having a connection to the carbureter throttle valve (not shown) by means of a rod 96, the construction being such that when the throttle valve is adjusted to supply more fuel to the engine, the arm 95 is actuated by. movement of the rod 96 so as to restrict communication between the conduit 46 and the port 93, thus forcing more of the lubricant to pass through the openings to the various bearings and sleeves. Extending through the oil deck 73 is the worm wheel shaft 10, this shaft being mounted in end bearings 97 and 98, and a center bearing 99, and surrounding the bearings 97, 98 and 99 areoil pockets 100, 101, and 102 respectively.

The lubricant discharged from the port 93 1S fed into the worm wheel chamber 107.

When the supply of lubricant in the last mentioned chamber reaches the level of the port-108, part of it will to the bearing 9 through a port 109 and through a similar port 110, lubricant is fed from the pocket 101 to the bearing 98. The lubricant for the center bearing 99 is fed through a groove 111, opening at its opposite ends into the chamber 103 and. 107. It will be noticed that the location of-the ports connecting the oil pockets and chambers is such that a constant level of lubricant is maintained in the upper deck and thus the forwardly I ticular embodiment pass into the pocket 100. From this pocket lubricant is supplied so arranged that the lubricant is positively fed to the contacting surfaces of all the moving parts even when the engine is inclined or rearwardly. Also the amount of lubricant supplied to the rotary sleeves is directly proportioned to the amount required and this is of material importance smceexcessive lubrication from complicated parts and in case of repair or replacement of any part, the lubricating system does not interfere with the accessibility of the various other engine parts. Moreover, the construction is one of extreme simplicity and; an engine embodying my lubricating system can be economically manufactured and convenientl assembled. While I have shown and described a parof my invention, it 'is obvious that various changes in construction and combination of parts can be made, and I do not, therefore, desire to limit the invention except as specified in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a lubricating system, the combination with a ported cylinder and a movable sleeve controlling the ports of said cylinder, of means for feeding lubricant to the contacting surfaces of the movable sleeve and cylinder, and a member carried by said sleeve for governing the amount of lubricant fed.

2. In a lubricating system, the combination with a ported cylinder and a movable sleeve controlling the'ports of said cylinder, of means for feeding lubricant to the contacting surfaces of said sleeve and cylinder comprising a lubricant chamber, a valve controlling the flow of lubricant to said chamber, and a member carried by the movable sleeve controlling said valve.

3.- In a lubricating system, the combination with a ported cylinder and a movable sleeve controlling the ports of said cylinder, of means for feeding lubricant to the contacting surfaces of said sleeve and cylinder comprising a lubricant chamber at the top of the sleeve, a passageway for supplying lubricant to said chamber, a valve controlling said passageway, a pin carried by said valve, a spring for pressing said valve to in this type of engine is ob ect1onable as well as insu cient lubrication. The entire construction is free 4. In a lubricating system, the combination with a pan into which the surplus lubricant drains, a transverse wall dividing Said pan into two substantially similar compartments, one of which receives said surplus lubricant, a pump located in the other compartment, and a trap valve for permitting the lubricant to flow from the first named compartment into the other, but preventing reverse flow of the lubricant.

5. In a lubricating system, the combination with a pan into which the lubricant drains, of a transverse partition wall dividing said pan into two compartments, a lubricant pump in one compartment, a return pipe for discharging the lubricant into the other of said compartments, and a trap valve for permitting the lubricant to flow from the last mentioned compartment into the first mentioned compartment, but preventing reverse flow of the lubricant.

6. In a lubricating system, the combination with spaced crank shaft bearings, of a crank shaft mounted in said bearings, said crank shaft having a pluralit of connect ing rodbearings ofiset from t e axis of the crank shaft bearing, and means for conducting lubricant from one of the offset connecting rod hearings to another bearin in the arc of a circle having its center coincident with that of the main crank shaft.

7. In a lubricating system, the combination with spaced crank shaft bearings, of a crank shaft mounted in said bearings, said crank shaft having a plurality of connecting rod bearings offset from the axis of the crank shaft bearings, and means for conducting the lubricant from one of the offset connecting rod bearings to another bearing, comprising a by-pass conduit so constructed that the lubricant in passing from one connecting rod bearing to the other, does not have to travel back toward the axis of the crank shaft bearing.

8. In a lubricating system, the combination with an oil deck, of a gear shaft extending through said oil deck, bearings for said shaft in said deck, and lubricant pockets formed adjacent said bearings so as to maintain a supply of lubricant adjacent said bearings when the oil deck is inclined.

MARTIN L. WILLIAMS. 

